History Of International Women’s Day

Bella Breakdown

International Women’s day occurred on March 8th this year, and it gave all of the ladies around the world a reason to pat themselves and all other women on the back, saying anything from “Yes, we are ALL kweens!” to “Here’s to strong women. May we know them, may be be them, may we raise them.”

I have personally loved International Women’s Day ever since I became a staunch feminist in high school (thanks, mom!). It gives all of us the opportunity to be celebrated, instead of torn down, berated, or belittled for who we are. Most of the time, I use the day to shout out a thank you to all the women in my life on Instragram and through text message. But this year, I got to wondering, “Where does this lovely, lady holiday come from?”

Crazily enough, it was started in the early 1900’s in New York (no surprise there). The 1910 International Socialist Women’s Conference declared that International Women’s Day should be held annually.

Then, when women gained freedom in Russia in 1917 they stated that March 8th be a national women’s holiday. From that point forward, other socialist and communist countries joined in on the day, and finally the US officially adopted it during the feminist movement in the 1960s.

Ok… how is it that Russia made this movement official way before the US? We were so behind the times.

Then, in 1975, the United Nations made the day official, stamping it as international for years to come. The next time you celebrate International Women’s Day, raise a glass to all the ladies (or slaydies) in your life and remember that women have made some amazing progress, and we still have a ways to go to gain equality. #Balanceforbetter